This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
As will be appreciated, oil and natural gas have a profound effect on modern economies and societies. Indeed, devices and systems that depend on oil and natural gas are ubiquitous. For instance, oil and natural gas are used for fuel in a wide variety of vehicles, such as cars, airplanes, boats, and the like. Further, oil and natural gas are frequently used to heat homes during winter, to generate electricity, and to manufacture an astonishing array of everyday products.
In order to meet the demand for such natural resources, numerous companies invest significant amounts of time and money in searching for and extracting oil, natural gas, and other subterranean resources from the earth. Particularly, once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, drilling and production systems are often employed to access and extract the resource. These systems may be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of a desired resource. Further, such systems generally include a wellhead assembly through which the resource is extracted. These wellhead assemblies may include a wide variety of components and/or conduits, such as various casings, valves, and the like, that control drilling and/or extraction operations. Additionally, various production and transport systems may also employ pipes or other fluid conduits, in addition to the components noted above.
As will be appreciated, various fluid conduits or other components of a production or transport system are typically coupled to one another to enable oil, gas, or the like to be extracted from the ground and routed to a desired location. Such fluid conduits (or “tubular members”) are often coupled together in end-to-end relationships via various connectors that facilitate flow of oil, gas, or the like between the conduits. In some instances, these connectors may be subjected to large axial loads, such as gravity (particularly in the case of suspended conduits) or internal pressures within the conduits. Also, it will be appreciated that the space available for connecting conduit members may be limited in some applications. Consequently, there is a need for durable connectors that, among other things, have low profiles, provide sealed connections between two components (e.g., fluid conduits), and can withstand the axial loads expected within a given system.